Auepdu.exe Virus ⛏️ (Coin Miner Trojan) Removal

Written by Robert Bailey
Auepdu.exe executable file is related to a malevolent program that can properly be defined as a coin miner virus. That malware form utilizes your hardware to mine cryptocurrencies, generally – Monero or DarkCoin1. It makes your computer almost nonfunctional because of high CPU use.
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What is Auepdu.exe process?

Auepdu.exe is a malicious process created by coin miner virus

As I have pointed out before, Auepdu.exe is a coin miner virus. The names of the .exe file can be different, but the effects are almost always the identical. Considering that coin miners aim at cryptocurrency mining, they utilize all possible hardware power of your personal computer to perform this process. This malware does not pay attention to the fact that you may need to make use of your desktop for other tasks – it will always use over 80% of your processor power.

Auepdu.exe Windows Process

Auepdu.exe – Extremely high CPU as well as GPU usage

Besides CPU consumption, some of the coin miners also use GPU power for their operations. In that situation, you will likely struggle also to see the mouse arrow moving – GPU is usually used on 100%. It is not as critical as processor for system work, so Auepdu.exe coin miner viruses don’t waste time on trifles and utilize it all. It often may lead to sad results.

Shortly about cryptocurrency mining

Crypto mining is a term that means the operation of calculating the transaction block hash. That is a basic element of any project based on the blockchain technology. Since this operation takes a lot of calculations, a strong desktop is required. Exactly, the video card is better for this task, because they have more cores available. Cryptomining farms are usually constructed of dozens of GPUs to conduct their activity effectively. Such systems are not usable for “general” purposes, like gaming or browsing the Web. Fraudsters who make profit via this coin miner use someones’ computers instead, even if they are used for the regular activity.2

List of the typical coin miner symptoms

  • Microsoft Defender is stopped;
  • CPU and GPU is loaded at 80-90% exactly after the system start
  • Cooling fans are running at high speed and create a lot of noise
  • A single process in Task Manager consumes all CPU and GPU power
  • How dangerous is the Auepdu.exe miner?

    Coin miners does not deal damage to your files. However, they make a lot of unpleasant things with the whole system

    Initially, Auepdu.exe virus makes your computer overloaded. It is not able to run your applications now, as all processor power is used by a virus. That malware does not care for your wants, all it pays attention to is generating income on you. Even if you are patient, and you waited until web browser is open, you will likely struggle with exceptionally sluggish performance. Pages will open for years, any type of logins will take about a minute – just a nightmare for a person who does a job online.

    Auepdu.exe Technical Summary.

    File NameAuepdu.exe
    TypeTrojan Coin Miner
    Detection NameTrojan:Win32/CoinMiner
    Distribution MethodSoftware bundling, Intrusive advertisement, redirects to shady sites etc.
    Similar behaviorAmdfendrsr.exe, Amdrsserv.exe, Amdow.exe
    RemovalDownload and install GridinSoft Anti-Malware for automatic Auepdu.exe removal.

    “Visible” harm is not a single unpleasant activity coin miners do to your computer. Auepdu.exe coin miner also deals damage to your operating system. To perform all malicious operations successfully, it ruins the protection components of your system. You will likely see your Microsoft Defender disabled – malware halts it to avoid detection. If you check the HOSTS file, you will likely see a ton of new entries – they are brought in by this trojan miner to connect your PC to a malicious mining network. All these changes are about to be thrown back to the original in the process of PC recovery.

    Hardware effects of coin miner activity

    Besides decreasing your system’s performance, performing at peak power for long times can trigger damage to your machine as well as increase electricity costs. Hardware components are created to easily get along with high load, but they can do so only when they are in a good shape.

    Little and covered processor cooling system is quite hard to damage. Meanwhile, graphic cards have big and easy-to-access fans, which can be easily cracked if affected while spinning, for instance, by the user much before the coin-miner injection. Malfunctioning cooling system, together with the very high load caused by Auepdu.exe can easily lead to GPU failure3. Graphic cards are also tend to have fast wearing when used for cryptocurrency mining. It is likely an undesirable case when your GPU’s performance decreases on 20-30% just after several weeks of being exploited in such a way.

    How did I get Auepdu.exe coin miner virus?

    Coin miners are spread through different ways, but their main sources are malicious banners and programs from dubious sources

    Coin miners are the most prevalent malicious programs among “serious” malware. Adware sometimes functions as a carrier for Auepdu.exe malware injection: it demonstrates you the banners, which have a link to malware downloading. Yes, this abstract “malware” may belong to any kind – another adware, spyware, rogue or backdoor. However, the statistics say that about 30% of all viruses spread through the malicious banners are coin miners – and Auepdu.exe is just one of them.4

    Unwanted banners adware

    The example of malicious banners you can see in the Internet

    An additional way you could get this item on your PC is by downloading it from the unreliable site as a part of a program. Users that spread hacked versions of well-known programs (which do not need the license key) have small chances to get paid. Thus, there is a huge lure to add in malware to the final package of the hacked application and get a coin for each setup. Prior to criticizing these guys for hacking and also malware distribution, ask yourself – is it alright to avoid purchasing the program in this manner? It is more affordable to pay $20-$30 at once than to pay a much greater sum for antivirus software and new parts for your PC.

    How to remove the Auepdu.exe miner from my PC?

    The best way to get rid of this coin miner virus is to use anti-malware software

    Eliminating such a virus demands making use of special software. Effective antivirus must have high capability at scanning and also be lightweight – in order to create no problems with utilization even on weak PCs. On top of that, it is recommended to have proactive security in your security solution – to halt the virus even before it starts. Microsoft Defender does not have these features for different reasons. That’s why I’d advise you to use a third-party anti-malware program for that purpose. GridinSoft Anti-Malware is a perfect choice that fits all of the mentioned qualities.5

    Prior to the malware removal, it is important to reboot your Windows into Safe Mode with Networking. Since Auepdu.exe miner consumes a lot of CPU capacity, it is needed to halt it before launching the security program. Otherwise, your scan will last for years, even though the GridinSoft program is pretty lightweight.

    Booting the PC into Safe Mode with Networking

    Press the Start button, then choose Power, and click on Reboot while holding the Shift key on the keyboard.

    Boot into Windows Safe Mode

    Windows will reboot into recovery mode. In that mode, choose Troubleshoot→ Startup Settings→ Safe Mode with Networking. Press the corresponding button on your keyboard to choose that option.

    windows safe mode boot option with command prompt

    When your computer is in Safe Mode, all third-party software, along with the majority of non-critical operating system components, are not launched with the system start. That allows you to clean the PC without dealing with high processor usage of the coin miner.

    Remove Auepdu.exe coin miner virus with GridinSoft Anti-Malware

    Download and install GridinSoft Anti-Malware. You can use this anti-malware program for free during its 6-day trial period. In that term, all functions are available, and it takes no payments to remove malware from your system.

    GridinSoft Anti-Malware free trial

    After activating your free trial, start Full scan. It may last up to 10 minutes. You may use the PC as usual.

    Scanning in GridinSoft Anti-Malware

    When the scan is finished, press the Clean Now button to remove all detected elements from your system. This procedure takes less than a minute.

    GridinSoft Anti-Malware after the scan process

    Now, you are good to go. Reboot your PC into a normal Windows mode and use just as there was nothing malicious.

    Remove Auepdu.exe Virus ⛏️ Trojan Coin Miner

    Name: Auepdu.exe

    Description: The Auepdu.exe is a Trojan Coin Miner that uses the infected computer’s sources to mine electronic money without your authorization. This Auepdu.exe will create your CPU to go for very warm temperatures for prolonged periods of time, which could reduce the life of the CPU.

    Operating System: Windows

    Application Category: Trojan

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    References

    1. Read about why Monero and DarkCoin are so popular amongst cybercriminals.
    2. Detailed explanation of how does cryptomining work.
    3. About unwanted effects for GPUs in the process of cryptomining.
    4. Read more about various malware type on Cybersecurity Glossary.
    5. Our review on GridinSoft Anti-Malware.

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    About the author

    Robert Bailey

    I'm Robert Bailey, a passionate Security Engineer with a deep fascination for all things related to malware, reverse engineering, and white hat ethical hacking.

    As a white hat hacker, I firmly believe in the power of ethical hacking to bolster security measures. By identifying vulnerabilities and providing solutions, I contribute to the proactive defense of digital infrastructures.

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